Vol. 12, Special Issue 10 (2023)

Author(s):
Soumya Singh and Komal Chauhan

Abstract:
Diabetes is a growing concern affecting almost 422 million people worldwide on an annual basis. It is primarily divided into two categories: Type 1 (insulin dependent) and Type 2 (non-insulin dependent). The former one is characterized by absolute insulin deficiency while the latter is marked by relative insulin deficiency. There are several classes of hypoglycemic drugs used to treat this epidemic but besides causing economic burden, these drugs lead to many side effects. Amidst this, moving beyond allopathic medicines and shifting our focus towards functional foods would be a good idea. In this context, snack bars have been considered as a viable option for functional food development. The present research focuses on preparing millet-fortified fruit-based snack bars which also has the goodness of insulin-rich camel milk powder. Millets are easy to digest, gluten-free and contains various antioxidants that are potential enough to treat diabetes. Apple pomace lowers CMPF (3-carboxy-4-methyl-5-propyl-2-furanopropanoic acid) levels, a sensitive marker in human body related to glucose associated disorders thereby promoting diabetes prevention. Last but not the least, camel milk powder is insulin enriched and research reports that its regular consumption can treat diabetes. Therefore, in the current study, antidiabetic snack bars have been developed and its shelf life has been assessed for a period of 3 months. The bars were kept in LDPE (low density polyethylene) zip lock pouches at a temperature of 4 °C (refrigerated temperature) throughout the study. Thiobarbituric acid (TBA), free fatty acid (FFA), peroxide value (PV) and microbial values were recorded in the starting and thereafter, at an interval of 1 month to study the changes in shelf life parameters.